Flight school question

[Hose]

Just my two cents...

As an individual that went through DCA as a student and an instructor, I would have to say my emotions are mixed when it comes to the academy. Any flight school can give you the results that you are looking for if you work really hard. Does it give you a quick route to the airlines? Yes, but you still need hard work and a lot of luck. I really had a great time at DCA. The 90% of the instructors are really great and will help you out alot. The huge negetive is that over the years, DCA has become very demanding on the instructor when it comes to rules of flight and paper work. It also doesn't help the fact that they require you to do all of this additional work off the clock and when they do pay you it is very minimal. As long as you can put up with the Gestapo management as a flight instructor then you will be O.K. Just keep in mind that with DCA, there will be individuals that will defend the flight school no matter what others say and people that have had the worst experience ever. Really in the end it is totally up to your attitude and your work ethic. But hey, DCA got me where I wanted to be!

Just know that no one can tell you which flight school is right for you. I wish you good luck!

 

[upndsky]

I went to ERAU many years ago and I enjoyed the experience. The one thing I would have done differently is to obtain my private pilot's license at a regular Part 61 school. There is a big difference between a large 141 school, where everything is structured and many go-no go decisions are made by others (like in the airlines), and a mom-and-pop flight school, where you have to call all the shots.

Having taught at a small flight school and working for a freight company that flies single-pilot operations, I find that many pilots who come out of these Part 141 schools have trouble making their own decisions when it comes to the operational aspects of their jobs. As a product of one of those schools myself, I can tell you I found it to be a challenging transition. Of course, this is a moot point if you can go directly from the school to an airline, but there is never a guarantee of that. I'd say get at least some exposure to the "non-airline" world, so that if you ever find yourself in it, it won't be a shock.

 

[vmc-hound]

in my opinion 60k is a lot to pay back. Find a good school with people who care about your success. Some might say Delta academy is paid for training some say not but... which ever school gives you the opprotunity to learn and has enough airplanes with good instructors you can not go wrong!!! Watch out for some schools who charge by the hour sometimes try to drag you along to make you pay more...Get your prvt at a 61 school then do your homework...Don't get caught up in the "guaranteed" interview...Interview does not mean job...if they (interviewers) like you and you have the experience to back it up it does not matter if you are chuck Yeager or an idot they will give you a chance!!! Also If you can get on as an employee at a regional throwing bags or whatever you will not have to get the 1200/200 along with the rest of the world...internal applicants get more respect at interviews than coming from an academy and you usually know the company...It can not hurt to persue your ratings at a good flight school while working part time at ASA, Comair, Skywest, Coex whatever... just an opinion but whatever it is just keep in mind unless you have interest free financing 60k plus is a lot of money to pay back while res making 20k a year...

 

[weeks]

I'm an instructor and evaluator at a small but growing school in Scottsdale, AZ. Great place to be. Check us out. We'll save you a lot of headaches. CRM Airline Training Center.

 

[SIGman]

I would not use CRM training as a primary reason to look into a MAPD/Comair/ATP type program.

You get very little practical experience with it and a 3 credit course just teaches you the theory that could be learned from reading some good books.

YOU CAN GET GREAT TRAINING AT A PART 61 SCHOOL. There are MANY great instructors out there. And you will save thousand of $$ with this route vs a MAPD/Comair/ERAU/etc.

Here is what you get for you money @ MAPD/Comair.

-fast-track to the airline interview. Research the chances of getting the job if you complete the program. You'll find 80-95%.
-gauranteed to get structured/standardized training. Sure, you CAN get this anywhere, but good luck finding and instructor that can/will do it.
-get a degree in the process (Associates or Bachelors, depending on program)
-great-invaluble support from other students working through the program. Part 61, its pretty much an individual effort (in my experience.)

The pros and cons have been covered thousand of times on this board and jetcareers.com. I would definitely do some research before enrolling either way.

Cheers,
D

 

[boxjockey]

All of these folks bring up very good points. DO YOUR HOMEWORK!!! TAKE YOUR TIME!!! I'm not saying DCA or the other academies aren't suitable places to go, just that there's more than one way to skin a cat. I didn't appreciate things like being charged $1200 per groundschool to have a green CFI reading the same thing out of a notebook that was already in front of me. Just my 2 cents. UPNDSKY has a good point about decision making. I've flown with a lot of different people, and I've found the ones that make the most sound decisions are the ones who have experience on their own. There is a lot to be said for teaching outside an academy environment as well as single pilot IFR freight and pax operations. In my humble opinion these things do more to mold the character of a pilot than anything during flight school. Go to DCA, Flight Safety, PanAm, etc. See what they have to offer. Just don't get hung up on their sales tactics. That's what I did, and I wish I would have done more research. Just remember that whichever you choose, they all lead in the right direction.


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